Yellow school buses are going green with a $1 billion investmentFor decades, American children have traveled to school in buses that spew pollution — diesel fumes that have been linked to asthma and other ailments.
If the Biden administration has its way, those humble yellow school buses will soon play a key role in the green-energy transition sweeping the nation.
On Monday, the administration announced nearly $1 billion for school districts to replace diesel buses with cleaner versions, including electric buses. The grants are aimed at protecting kids from harmful air pollution while curbing the greenhouse gas emissions that are warming the planet.
The money comes from the 2021 bipartisan infrastructure law, which authorized a total of $5 billion for cleaner school buses. The Environmental Protection Agency will dole out grants that will allow more than 280 school districts serving more than 7 million students nationwide to purchase more than 2,700 clean buses. Overall, the agency has already allocated nearly $2 billion of the $5 billion.
“Zero-emission school buses can and one day will be the American standard, and we’re hitting the accelerator on a cleaner and healthier future for all,” EPA Administrator Michael Regan said on a Monday call with reporters.
School districts in low-income, rural and tribal communities account for about 86 percent of grant recipients, according to the EPA. Regan announced the funding during a Monday visit to Stone Mountain Middle School in Stone Mountain, Ga., a suburb of Atlanta that has struggled with poor air quality..................
https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2024/01/08/biden-clean-school-buses/